Orange women drop close game to DePaul

The Syracuse women’s basketball team’s hopes of a .500 record in Big East play vanished Saturday with a 74-71 loss at DePaul.

The defeat dropped SU to 19-9 overall and 6-9 in conference games with only one regular-season contest remaining – at 7 p.m. Monday in the Carrier Dome against No. 8 West Virginia. In league games decided by three points or less -- or in overtime -- SU's record dropped to 1-6.

DePaul was led by the one-two punch of Anna Martin and Keisha Hampton. Martin led all scorers with 31 points, including making 5-of-8 shots from 3-point range and a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line. Hampton scored 19 points and had eight rebounds to nine for Martin.

Seniors Juanita Ward and Nicole Michael piloted the Orange’s effort, with each scoring 20 points. Ward made 8-of-11 attempts from the field, while Michael converted 8-of-15 shots. Freshman Carmen Tyson-Thomas added 12 points in her first start of the season.

DePaul (19-10, 8-7) jumped out to a 20-11 lead at the mid-point of the first half before Syracuse went on a 24-6 run to grab its own nine-point advantage (35-26) with two seconds remaining. The Blue Demons’ Sam Quigley cut that gap by a third with a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

In the second half, DePaul tied the score at 37-37 on a 3-pointer by Hampton at the 17:11 mark, then grabbed its biggest lead at 54-45 on a trey by Martin with 10:39 remaining. SU tied the score at 56-56 on a jumper by Tyson-Thomas before DePaul went on a 9-2 run to take a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

After Monday’s game against West Virginia, the Orange will play in the Big East Tournament next weekend. Syracuse is likely to play a first-round game on Friday.